This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project from Decision Science Associates will develop a software risk management decision support system (DSS) that combines methods from software measurement, Bayesian statistics, and multiattribute utility theory. The DSS will support a software manager's assessment and evaluation of risks and assist in making tradeoffs and decisions under uncertainty. Technical objectives of Phase I are as follows: identify the specific needs for decision support; develop a methodology for assessing risks, performing tradeoffs, evaluating alternatives, and making decisions in light of risks, uncertainties, and constraints; develop a plan for the decision support system to be developed in the next phase of the project; and demonstrate the feasibility of the Phase II system by developing a prototype. These objectives will be pursued by conducting three tasks in Phase I: (1) identification of important factors in a DSS, (2) development of a methodology, and (3) development of a computer prototype. The resulting DSS will assist software managers in managing risk and other development problems in software projects. Potential applications exist for the product of the R&D of the second phase of the project in both commercial and federal government markets. These include markets for the risk assessment process (service), the decision support system (product), and a technology transfer course (service). Potential customers are in the federal government, its contractors, and commercial organizations. Targeted companies are those that engage in substantial software product development, especially those that develop high-reliability or safety-critical systems.
